Stay Beautiful
by Miss-understood- Perfect
Summary: Song fic to 'Stay Beautiful' by Taylor Swift. Hermione has to tell Draco.


A.N- Hey you guys…its 2am here…just bored and listening to this song…lol I'm picturing myself in Emma's place, Ron is my new obsession he is HOT in Order Of The Phoenix. Hope you like it!

**Cory's eyes are like a jungle**

**He smiles it's like a radio**

**He whispers songs into my window**

**In words that nobody knows**

_Merlin…_She thought. Hermione was sitting in transfiguration, just a few feet away from him. The guy that had her forgetting what the 12 uses of dragon blood were because she was too busy staring at him in class, which embarrassed her to hell and back.

It wasn't Ron or Harry, or even Neville for God's sake. She wished it were someone simple like that, so she could get it over with and tell him how she actually felt. But the gods of love conspired against her, as always and of course it wasn't someone simple. It was bloody Draco Malfoy.

_It's not like I'm falling for a Death Eater or anything, at least. _Draco had switched sides during the war. _Ohh…he's hot…_ His white blond hair glinted in the light that came in through the class windows.

"Hermione Granger, could you answer my question please? Or would you like to sit there and stare at the wall some more?"

_She asked me a question? When? I should pay more attention._ The know-it-all felt mortified when she asked the Professor in a timid voice, "Could you repeat the question please? I didn't catch it."

"I'm sure about that, Ms. Granger. Please pay more of your considerable attention to this class, so that next time I ask you a question, you can answer it. Now, can anyone tell me the answer?" With a disapproving glance, Professor McGonagall addressed the rest of the room.

Draco raised his hand. "It's _Hersiab Goshfin_, I believe."

"Thank you Draco, at least someone was paying attention."

Draco twisted around in his seat to address Hermione. "Don't worry, you'll get it next time." With a quick smile, he turned around to face the front again.

_At least we're friends now…his smile…does he know what he does? _Every time he looked at her with his piercing, but warm grey eyes it felt to her like someone was trying to _Wingardium Leviosa _her stomach.

**There's pretty girls on every corner**

**They watch him as he's walking home**

**Sayin'**

**Does he know**

**Will you ever know**

_Every one loves him, seriously…including me._ Hermione had to admit that to herself. I mean, who didn't love the grey eyed, blond Slytherin? The only person who she that wasn't even affected by him was Emma, and that was because she was so in love with Ron. Ever since Draco Malfoy had turned to the light side of the war and ultimately had been a driving force in the defeat of Voldemort, there had been no reason to not like him. That ugly smirk was gone off his face, he was almost as smart as she was and he was athletic. How much more perfect could he get?

_God, I need to get over him…I mean out of all of the girls he could choose from he's not going to choose me._ Why would he choose her if he could choose Padma or Cho? Those two were always waiting outside of his classes or next to the Slytherin dorms to catch a glimpse of him as he was heading to his room to relax. How the two of them knew where the Slytherin dorms were, she had no clue. Probably from one of their many ex-boyfriends.

The thing is, he acts like he doesn't know he has admirers just waiting for him to notice them. The old Malfoy would have been boasting about it at every chance he got.

_But all he does now is smile and act like it doesn't make all of the girls hearts flutter. _What was wrong with her? _Merlin Hermione you need to shake yourself out of this! You haven't even studied for your NEWTS since last week, because every time you go to the library he's there too, pouring over something or another._

Harry and Ron were completely oblivious to her longings for their new best mate, although for different reasons. Harry thought everything was peachy since they had won the war. He was throwing himself into being a normal teen-ager. Every Quidditch game,

trip to Hogsmead, or prank against Filch that was planned, Harry was in the center of. Hermione just let him do what he wanted to, for he finally had the chance to now that the weight of the Wizarding world was lifted off of his shoulders. He deserved it.

And Ron, oh Ron. She had gotten over him months ago, for they were just too different, and had too many petty squabbles. She needed someone who could challenge her brain. _Like Draco…_

Ron was wrapped up in his steady girlfriend anyways. Ever since they black hared, brown eyed transfer from Canada had arrived at Hogwarts, he had eyes for nothing else. God, he even stopped eating so much at meals to stare at her, sitting just a few feet away next to Ginny and her friends. The outgoing Emma had easily won his heart in a week, and was going out with him in two. They were inseparable.

Hermione wished that her and Draco could be like that. _Like it's ever going to happen though…_

The bell rang, and the class jumped up, wanting to get to lunch as quickly as possible. As Hermione followed the Slytherin out of McGonagall's classroom, she could see the girls blush and try to look their cutest as he walked by.

**You're beautiful**

**Every little piece, love**

**Don't ya know, you're really gonna be someone**

**Ask anyone **

**And when ya find, everything you looked for**

**I hope your love leads ya back to my door**

**Oh, but if it don't**

**Stay beautiful**

Back in the Gryffindor common room, the bushy haired girl ran as fast as she could to the 7th year girls' rooms. Catapulting herself onto her plush, gold and red four-poster, she hauled out her iPod. She had magically enhanced it to not only play in Hogwarts, but to play whatever song she wanted just by listening to her thoughts.

The little electronic whirled as it started up, and began to play the same song that she had been listening to all month long, ever since she had discovered it. It truly was everything she wanted to say to her crush, everything she planned to say. That is if she can get up enough of her Gryffindor courage to do it.

'Stay Beautiful' by Taylor Swift came to life in her ears. As she heard the opening guitar cords she couldn't help but to relax and smile, and turned the guys' name in the song into Draco in her mind. Maybe she really would follow through on what she had planned for tonight, at the singing contest. What could she lose, after all?

Well, there was the little thing called Dracos' friendship. The Golden Trio had been the first ones to accept the Slytherin turning on his father. By the month of October it was rare to see Harry, Hermione and Ron without the blond haired boy in the hallways.

If she went ahead with her plan, and it didn't go well, what would happen? Would Draco feel too awkward around her now that he knew that her feelings for him were more than just a close friendship? She knew that she would rather have his friendship than nothing at all. If they went back to they way they had been the first six years at Hogwarts…it was a recurring nightmare. In Hermiones' opinion, something that could very well happen.

_Fck it. I have to know. _She steeled herself for what she was about to do in a few hours time. In a final gesture that she was going through with it, she got up and began to pick out what she would wear.

**Cory finds another way to be the highlight of my day**

**I'm taking pictures in my mind**

**So I can save them for a rainy day**

**It's hard to make a conversation when he's taking my breath away**

**I should say**

**Hey, by the way**

30 minutes…oh god. I'm going to puke. Hermione couldn't eat any of the dinner placed in front of her. She was about to abandon everything and run out of the Great Hall when he came and sat down besides her, potions book in hand. Laying his book down on the table, he grabbed some chicken off a nearby plate.

"So how's life treating you? You seemed pretty spacey in class, something wrong?" His eyes filled with concern.

Hermiones' breath caught in her throat. How did he make it so hard to breath? "Nah. I'm okay, just tired from studying so much." He should believe that.

He did. "I can see that. Get some rest okay?" Draco stood up. "Look, I gotta get over to my 'house' table before Slughorn has a fit. Oh, and Hermione?"

"…Yeah?"

"You look good, should come out from in under those robes more often." He smiled mischievously at her, and with a final wink, sauntered off to the table he himself had dubbed, 'The Snake Lair'. It would have been so much easier to just tell him then. But too late…

**You're beautiful**

**Every little piece, love**

**Don't ya know, you're really gonna be someone**

**Ask anyone**

**And when ya find everything you looked for**

**I hope your love leads ya back to my door**

**Oh, but if it don't**

**Stay beautiful**

She couldn't help but stare at him as he walked off. For once noticing something, Ron tore his eyes away from Emma long enough to talk to her.

"Who you staring at?"

"What do you mean?" She felt herself unwillingly blushing. Ron had picked the worst time to be observant.

"You're staring at someone. Who?" Ever since they had realized that their feelings for each other weren't romantic, Ron had turned into an overprotective big brother. If someone so much as glanced her way, he glared at them until they never looked at her again. _No wonder I've never had a boyfriend_.

Emma whipped her head around to stare at her with her big brown eyes. She could have been it Slytherin, in fact she had said that the hat had to be convinced that she didn't want to be put into that house. It always seemed like she knew everything that was going on around her, even if she hadn't been told. Hermione wouldn't be surprised if she knew about her feelings for Draco, and had for a long time.

"Ron, you're just imagining things." Emma coyly whispered. Like a trained puppy, all of Ron's attention was focused onto her. They smiled lovingly at each other.

Hermione almost never caught the slit second that Emma looked at her, and raised one eyebrow in question. She sent a thankful look back her way, and then tried to concentrate on the Sheppard's pie in front of her.

**If you and I are a story**

**That never gets told**

**If what you are is a daydream**

**I never get to hold**

**At least you know…**

Just looking at Emma and Ron made her realize that she had to let Draco know how she felt. A warm feeling rose through her body as she pictured her and Draco in the placed of her red headed friend and his girlfriend. She had to let him know.

"Singing competition in 5 minutes! All competitors to the staff table."

_Oh Merlin._ It was now or never. With a nervous glace down at the golden plate in front of her, she shakily rose from her seat. Ignoring Ron and Harry's questioning looks along with Emma's 'I knew it' one, one foot went in front of the other as Hermione had it to the staff table.

Startled gasps rose from the students. Who knew The Brain could do anything other than getting top marks?

"Quiet." McGonagall commanded. When all of the competitors reached the front of the Great Hall, "Competitors, this way."

The 10 or so students followed the Professor out of the Great Hall and into a small, empty room just to the side of it. Once there, she started giving out instructions.

"Ok, all of you, please write down your name, the name of your song and who sings it onto the parchment. We also need to know if you will be playing any instruments."

With a nervous sigh Hermione got into the last place in the line. In shaky writing she wrote all of the needed information on the parchment.

"Now, the order you have signed this list in is the order you will perform." This announcement drew a groan of terror from Colin Creevy, who had been first. "No backing out now Creevy, come with me. When you hear your name announced come through this door. Everything you need will already be set up." With a flourish she motioned Colin to come with her, and turned, and stalked out the door.

For another half an hour an increasingly nervous Hermione sat in a corner of the room and prayed for something to happen that would cause the singing to stop. But as she heard the loud boos that signalled the end of Pansy Parkinson's performance, she knew that fate wasn't on her side once again.

As Pansy dashed into the room in tears, Hermione could hear her name being announced by Lee Jordan, who had come back to Hogwarts to act as a commentator. Taking one last look around, she gathered up all of her courage and opened the door.

The amount of faces that greeted her was indescribable. Everyone was anxiously waiting for the know-it-all to show them what she had.

Lee announced "And here's Hermione Grange singing her version of 'Stay Beautiful' by Taylor Swift."

She music started, and as the opening guitar part played the whispered into the mike. "I'd like to dedicate this to Draco Malfoy"

As the words started Hermione began to sing in her clear, soprano voice. The whole of Hogwarts stared at the gorgeous girl.

**You're beautiful**

**Every little piece, love**

**Don't ya know, you're really gonna be someone**

**Ask anyone**

**And when ya find everything you looked for**

**I hope your love leads ya back to my front door**

**Oh, but if it don't**

**Will you stay…**

When the song ended, Hermione got a standing ovation. Not wanting to see her best friends reactions to the news, she turned around as quickly as she could, and fled into the small room which she had came from. As the Gryffindor slammed the door, she slid into a sitting position.

What had she just done?_ This is so going to turn out for the worst._ There was no time to process her thoughts, because Lee came in and hauled her back out into the Great Hall as he announced that she had hands down won the competition.

Her friends roared, and with permission from Dumbledore, quickly jumped up onto the make shift stage to hug and congratulate her.

As Hermione managed to get out of the death grip Ron had her in, she noticed a flash of white near her. _Oh no…what's he going to say?_

With big eyes, she turned around, preparing for the rejection she was sure was going to come.

**Beautiful, beautiful beautiful**

**Beautiful, beautiful beautiful**

He never looked any better than he did at that one moment. As Hermione opened her mouth to apologize, he gently grabbed a hold of her arm and silently led her out of the Great Hall and into the empty hallway.

"I'm so sorry Draco. I shouldn't have. She whispered to the floor, willing the ears not to come.

A gentle hand placed itself under her delicate chin, and pushed her head full of curls up. "Hermione, you have nothing to be sorry for."

"But I practically ruined our friendship"

"True." In that one instant her whole world came crashing down.

She turned away, as the tears started coming, and prepared to run for the safety of her rooms. Before the tiny girl got two feet a string pair of arms grabbed her around the waist and pulled her to his toned body.

Hermione couldn't breath. What was he doing?

"'Mione, baby I didn't mean it like that. You ruined our friendship but you started something much more, much better. I know I sound so damn cliché right now it's not funny but it is true. I've wanted to be your girlfriend for the longest time now. I'm just too much of a coward to do anything about it. You have no idea how happy you've made me feel tonight, how glad I am that you're brave enough to confess how you feel. It's one of the many reasons I like you."

"Oh Merlin Draco…thank you. I was so nervous up there…you just make me like that."

"That's good, cause you make me like that too. I guess that makes us perfect for each other doesn't it?"

"Yeah, I guess it does." Hermione couldn't keep the now happy tears from sliding down her face. This had ended so amazingly well.

In one easy move, he flipped Hermione around to face him. Draco tenderly wiped the tears off her face, and then brought his lips down the meet hers.

**A la la la…**

**Ohh ohh **

**Oh but if it don't**

**Stay beautiful**

**Stay beautiful**

**Ohh**

A.N-That's it! How was it? Review and tell me.


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